The magnitude of the Astros scandal could draw more casual fans in to watch games this seasonGETTY IMAGES
One potential positive effect on MLB from the Astros' illegal sign-stealing scandal is that it could "be the gateway drug back into the sport" for some fans, according to ESPN's Jeff Passan. Appearing yesterday on ESPN Radio's "The Will Cain Show," Passan said, "I've talked to more people this spring who have said my friends are interested in baseball now or at the very least are asking about baseball or having water cooler conversations about baseball or cocktail party conversations about baseball than ever before." Passan noted he has been on TV "far more" this year during Spring Training than last year, when Bryce Harper, Manny Machado, Dallas Kuechel and Craig Kimbrel "were still free agents." Last year was a "very baseball-specific thing and this is the kind of story that has so many interesting elements to it." ESPN's Will Cain said the scandal is not "just controversy, it's provided us characters and it's provided us villains." It has "provided the exact elements of any entertainment medium." Cain: "We now know who some of the more nefarious players in the entire drama are, who the villains are, who we're rooting for, who we're against." This has "all the elements of something that ends up being good for baseball in the end" ("The Will Cain Show," ESPN Radio, 2/18).
ALL PRESS IS GOOD PRESS? USA TODAY's Gabe Lacques writes this scandal is "testing the concept that there's no such thing as bad publicity." It is the "dead of February, the NBA just wrapped up a wildly entertaining and emotional All-Star Game, and shortly thereafter its greatest star ... is tweeting about baseball." Lacques: "There's very little negative about that." LeBron James' missives "gifted the league more earned media than 50 [Angels CF] Mike Trout home runs ever could" (USA TODAY, 2/19). In Seattle, Matt Calkins wrote all of the best marketing minds in the world "wouldn't have been able to come up with a plot this intriguing heading into the season." The "incessantly loathed" Yankees suddenly "look lovable" next to the Astros. Calkins: "You'd think a scandal of this proportion might suck the interest out of a sport." But often the best way to "drum up enthusiasm is to unite against a common enemy" (SEATTLE TIMES, 2/18). In L.A., Mark Whicker writes MLB "will profit short-term, because nothing sells like villainy." Whicker: "Check the attendance." If ESPN "could show the Astros on the road every Sunday night this year, with all the shock-and-awe drama, it surely would" (L.A. DAILY NEWS, 2/19). NBC Sports Chicago's JJ Stankevitz said, "This story has drama, it's got a clear villain, it's got intrigue, it's got mystery, it's got cover-ups. It's got everything that you want" ("Sports Talk," NBC Sports Chicago, 2/18).
